Ronald Koeman says his decision to name Lionel Messi on the bench for Barcelona s LaLiga clash with Real Betis was down to the forward carrying a knock.

Messi was absent from Barca s starting line-up for the first time during Koeman s 10-game reign yet still managed to have a major say in his side s 5-2 victory at Camp Nou.

The Argentina international had failed to assist a goal or score from open play in six league matches before Saturday s victory.

It was the first time he had been benched for a league game since September 2019, but Koeman insists he was left out purely for fitness reasons.

We talked yesterday, Koeman said to Movistar Plus. Leo came out of the game against Dynamo Kiev with some discomfort and was not in a position to play from the sta…

Kevin De Bruyne s missed penalty proved costly for Manchester City as they played out an engrossing 1-1 draw with Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium. 

Mohamed Salah did convert a 13th-minute spot-kick as the reigning Premier League champions struck the first blow in the heavyweight top-flight tussle, putting them on course to sit top of the table during November s international break. 

City, however, weathered the early storm amid the Manchester downpours before countering impressively through Gabriel Jesus, his sixth goal in his past seven league outings. 

They could have scored again before half-time had the usually reliable De Bruyne not failed to convert from 12 yards out, the Belgian missing the target completely after another penalty wa…

Liverpool defender Trent Alexander-Arnold emphasised the value of results over performances following another narrow Premier League victory.

Virgil van Dijk scored two first-half goals, but the title favourites were made to work for Saturday s 2-1 triumph over Brighton and Hove Albion.

Alisson s dismissal for handling the ball outside his box led to a nervy final 15 minutes for substitute goalkeeper Adrian, who saved at full stretch from Aaron Mooy and almost spilled a tame Pascal Gross header into his own net.

Seven of Liverpool s past nine top-flight fixtures have been won by the Reds by a single-goal margin, the exceptions being a 1-1 draw with Manchester United and the 3-1 victory against Manchester City.

But having surged 11 points clear of Pep Guard…

Mesut Ozil is a Fenerbahce fanatic and could join the Turkish giants from Arsenal this month, according to agent Erkut Sogut.

The 32-year-old has not played for Arsenal since last March after being frozen out by first-team manager Mikel Arteta.

Ozil is into the final six months of his Emirates Stadium contract and revealed on Monday a move to either Turkey or the United States appeals to him.

Agent Sogut is hopeful his client will soon find a new club, with discussions already under way with clubs over a possible deal in the January window.

Ozil is not an ordinary Fenerbahce supporter. He s a fanatic. He would only come to Turkey to play for Fenerbahce. I hope it will happen, Sogut told beIN Sports Turkey.

This transfer needs a process. It woul…

Carlo Ancelotti claims Luka Modric will retire at Real Madrid, comparing the 36-year-old midfielder to his former charge, AC Milan legend Paolo Maldini.

The Croatia captain has been extending his contract year-by-year for a while now. His current one, therefore, expires at the end of the season, but Real boss Ancelotti isn t worried about losing his most creative player.

Modric joined Real from Tottenham Hotspur back in 2012 for a reported fee of €35 million, and despite being maliciously branded as the worst signing of the summer by the Spanish press at the time, he has so far made 429 appearances for the club, scoring 31 goals and laying on 70 assists. He has helped the team win four Champions League trophies and as many FIFA Club World Cups, three UEFA Super Cups, …

Lautaro Martinez declared Inter showed their true colours in Sunday s 3-0 derby victory over Milan at San Siro.

The Nerazzurri moved four points clear at the top of Serie A thanks to a double from Martinez and Romelu Lukaku s 23rd goal of the season in all competitions.

Lukaku crossed for his strike partner to nod in after only five minutes and each of them scored after the interval to put the game beyond Milan s reach.

Having been eliminated from European competition in December and beaten in the Coppa Italia semi-finals by Juventus, the Scudetto remains Inter s only hope for silverware in 2020-21.

Martinez is now determined to end the club s 11-year wait to become champions of Italy again.

This is what we are: we re united, we work every day to…

Fabinho thinks Mohamed Salah could go on to be regarded as one of the greatest players to ever pull on a Liverpool jersey after signing a new contract.

Salah ended speculation around his future by agreeing a new three-year deal on July 1 – the Egypt forward only had 12 months remaining on his previous deal with the Reds and could have departed as a free agent after the 2022-23 season.

That would have been a significant blow for Liverpool considering Salah s impact since joining from Roma in 2017.

The 30-year-old has made 254 appearances for the Reds and scored 156 goals, assisting 58 more.

Those 156 goals rank Salah ninth on the list of Liverpool s record scorers, while his Premier League goal involvements tally of 164 is third only to Robert Lewandow…

Kingsley Coman has signed a contract extension at Bayern Munich that runs until 2027.

Bayern confirmed the new deal for the 25-year-old on Wednesday.

The France winger s previous contract was due to run out in 2023 but Coman has signed on for an additional four years at the Allianz Arena.

Coman initially joined Bayern on loan in 2015 before completing a permanent transfer two years later.

He has won six Bundesliga titles, three DFB-Pokal trophies and the Champions League during his time at the club.

— FC Bayern English (@FCBayernEN)

Speaking about his extension, Coman told Bayern s official website: I m very happy because FC Bayern are one of the best clubs in the world and I know we still have a lot of opportunities and big…

Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels expressed his dismay at the manner in which his team were beaten by Rangers in the first leg of their Europa League knockout round play-off at Signal Iduna Park on Thursday.

The Bundesliga outfit lost 4-2 to the champions of Scotland, finding themselves 4-1 down after 54 minutes before Raphael Guerreiro fired a late goal back to add to Jude Bellingham s earlier effort.

Marco Rose s men were all over the place at the back, with a James Tavernier penalty and Alfredo Morelos goal giving them a 2-0 half-time lead, before John Lundstram made it three and a Dan-Axel Zagadou own goal restored the three-goal cushion after Bellingham briefly reduced the deficit.

Hummels was far from happy after the game, lamenting the way he and hi…

Bayern Munich boss Thomas Tuchel has hailed “world-class” Harry Kane ahead of their Champions League trip to Galatasaray where the German giants could move five points clear at the top of Group A.

Tuchel’s men have won both of their group matches so far but will come up against another unbeaten side in the form of the Turkish champions on Tuesday, and the goalscoring prowess of Kane could prove key in the clash.

The England captain took his tally to 10 goals in 11 appearances for Bayern when he found the back of the net in Saturday’s 3-1 win at Mainz, and Tuchel has praised the way his star striker has started since his summer arrival in Germany.

Another game, another goal moves onto nine for the season in the Bundesliga

— FC Bayern Munich (…